There’s rarely a worse feeling than opening your Gallery app only to find that a precious photo you’ve been holding onto is gone. Whether you accidentally deleted it or something happened with your phone and your photos are gone, Android gives us several ways to save and recover photos. Show
In this article, we’ll show you how to recover your deleted photos. Unfortunately, there are times when your photos are gone forever, but those times are actually quite rare. Ways to Recover Deleted Photos on AndroidThere are several ways to potentially recover deleted photos on Android, we’ll cover them starting from the simplest solutions. Check Your Trash FolderThe first thing you’ll want to do is check your Trash folder. When you delete a photo from your phone’s gallery, it is stored in the trash folder for 30 days. So, assuming that you recently trashed the image, it should be there. Here’s how to access your trash folder:
If your photo isn’t in this folder, don’t worry, we’ll help you keep looking. Check Google PhotosGoogle Photos is a pre-loaded photo storage application on your phone. When you sign into your Gmail account on your phone, you’re also signing into Google Suite (your phone’s native Google apps). This means there is an excellent chance that your photos are saved in the Google Photos app. For the most part, Google Photos will only upload images to the drive when your phone is plugged in, connected to Wi-Fi, and the app is open. So, if you’re looking to use this as a backup option, periodically ensure that those requirements are met. However, we’ll likely find your deleted photos in this app. Here’s how to check:
Although you may have to scroll for a bit, Google Photos makes it relatively easy to narrow down your search. Let’s say you accidentally deleted photos from your vacation. Grab the pull tab on the right-hand side and quickly scroll to that date. Assuming you’ve found the missing images, you’ll want to recover them back to your phone’s gallery. Here’s how to recover a Google Photo and save it in your phone’s gallery:
Hopefully, your photos are back in their rightful place, and you’re good to go. But, if you still haven’t located the elusive image, there are some more things to try out. Don’t forget to check Google Drive, too; sometimes photos are stored there. Check the Cloud BackupMost phone manufacturers have some sort of separate cloud backup that can store your photos, videos, texts, files, etc. LG has LG backup, Samsung has the Samsung Cloud. So let’s check the manufacturer’s cloud for our missing images.
One of the more common issues with this method is remembering your login information. Each manufacturer prompts you to create an account when you first set up your phone. This can become an issue if you weren’t paying attention or you’ve had the phone for a long time. Our best advice; search your email accounts for ‘LG,’ ‘Samsung,’ ‘HTC,’ or whatever manufacturer you’re using. When you sign up for the service, you get a confirmation email. That’ll help narrow down your username. Then, you can simply reset your password. At this point, we really hope you’ve found and recovered your missing photos. But we aren’t done yet if you haven’t. Let’s keep exploring some methods we’ve used in the past to recover lost images. Check the My Files Folder and Your SD CardOne thing we love about Android is the ability to customize; most models will take an external storage card for more space. If you have one, hopefully, your deleted photos are there. But, how do you check?
Check Google PlaySo this one might seem a little strange, but trust us, it has worked in the past. If you’re still with us, it means you have yet to recover your photos, so there’s another thing to try. We’re going to search for any third-party apps that save photos and that you’ve previously downloaded. Here’s what to do:
If you think this method is tedious, it is. But, if it’s the only way to recover photos of your childhood dog, then it’s certainly worth a try. Of course, after you recover the photo app, you’ll need to sign in. Do a quick search through your email accounts for confirmation emails by typing in the app’s name to narrow down the username. Third-Party Recovery ServicesIf you’ve ever searched “How to recover deleted photos on Android,” you’ve undoubtedly seen the numerous advertisements for third-party services that promise to recover your photos. We won’t go too much into reviewing these services here because it’s truly a “buyer beware” situation. We’ve tested various data recovery tools and have an article for Mac and Windows users here. But, some of these tools will work for Android devices too. However, there are a lot of websites that promise to retrieve your lost photos but don’t actually work. So, this method is definitely a “buyer beware” situation. If an image is truly gone, then there is no way to recover it. No matter what you’re promised. So, keep in mind if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Frequently Asked QuestionsWe really hope you have recovered your missing photos. But if you have more questions, keep reading. What do I do if my gallery app is missing?Suppose you open your phone’s app drawer, and the gallery app is missing. Before you panic, it isn’t gone forever. Your device’s native photo app is a permanent fixture on your device. 1. To bring the app back to your app drawer, head over to your device’s settings. 2. Tap on Apps, then filter by Default Apps. 3. Scroll through the list and tap on your gallery app. 4. Next, tap Enable. Does my SIM card store pictures?Unfortunately, no. At one time, SIM cards would store a phone’s contacts, but not pictures. However, you won’t find much data stored on a SIM card these days. As mentioned above, you may have an SD card which does save your photos as long as it’s set up to do so. Final ThoughtsHopefully, you’ve recovered your missing images by now. But, take it from the experts; sometimes, you have to be really creative to recover deleted files. Have you successfully recovered your deleted photos using another method? Let us know in the comments below! Why did my pictures disappeared from my Android?It could be Gallery on Android not working, update failure, phone jailbreak, malware infection, third-party software bugs, or more. In some cases, Android missing photos matter might be attributed to a hardware malfunction like broken screen, broken components, microSD card error, etc.
How do I find pictures that disappeared from my gallery?Launch Google Photos on your Android phone and go to Library. Head to Trash. The photos that were deleted in the last 60 days will appear on the list. Select the pictures that disappeared from the phone to retrieve.
Can you recover lost photos on Android?If you deleted an item and want it back, check your trash to see if it's there. Touch and hold the photo or video you want to restore. At the bottom, tap Restore.
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